As I mentioned in my sermon on February 10, all the parishes and missions in the diocese are asked to administer the "U.S. Congregational Vitality Survey" on March 31st. The diocese has, for a number of reasons, been “given” this opportunity — at no cost! It’s a robust survey, and will help congregations identify their strengths in several different areas: our “Overall Vitality”; how well we prepare people for, and engage in, mission within our congregation and outside our walls; do we prepare servant leaders; is our worship Spirit-filled; how well we care for each other, etc.

The group behind the survey has done this before, and has a good solid academic and theological base for its work and conclusions. I was pretty excited to hear about it, as it will come out this spring, right when we’re in the midst of our “Season of Discovery.” The survey will be administered in conjunction with each service on the 31st. We’d love to get everyone’s response, so, if you know you’ll be away, there will be an on-line version we will provide. Pay attention to the weekly E-Newsletter for more information as we draw nearer!